Staying Home Sucks, home
Stream flowing into Mannin Bay
Ballyconneely, the nearest town, 6 km away. Photo: Gareth James, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Doonloughin

Surf spot · Ireland

Is it worth the trip?

17Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Wed 4: too small (4 ft swell at 11 s), sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 21 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 smushy
Energy
213kJ
Wind
E 11 kn
Temp
11°C

Tue 3 · 18 out of 100

Swell
3 ft13 ssoft
Energy
257kJ
Wind
E 7 kn
Temp
10°C

Wed 4 · 29 out of 100

Swell
4 ft11 ssoft
Energy
408kJ
Wind
E 11 kn
Temp
11°C

Thu 5 · 17 out of 100

Swell
3 ft9 ssoft
Energy
162kJ
Wind
ENE 11 kn
Temp
11°C

Fri 6 · 3 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft13 s
Energy
7kJ
Wind
SE 6 kn
Temp
10°C

Sat 7 · 4 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft12 s
Energy
6kJ
Wind
NNE 3 kn
Temp
11°C

Sun 8 · 6 out of 100

Swell
4 ft7 smushy
Energy
144kJ
Wind
WSW 12 kn
Temp
12°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 160, good
  2. Mon 221, too small
  3. Tue 318, too small
  4. Wed 429, too small
  5. Thu 517, too small
  6. Fri 63, too small
  7. Sat 74, too small
  8. Sun 86, too small
  9. Mon 930, poor
  10. Tue 1024, poor

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 6–20 ftof swell
  • Water 12 °C4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.

Doonloughin does not suit intermediates. This is the forecast for experts, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Doonloughin, each day
DayScorefor ExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov60, good7 ft9 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)606kJwind from the north-north-east, 9 knots, offshore12°C
Mon 2Nov21, too small4 ft8 smushy2 ft at break (est.)213kJwind from the east, 11 knots11°C
Tue 3Nov18, too small3 ft13 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)257kJwind from the east, 7 knots10°C
Wed 4Nov29, too small4 ft11 ssoft5 ft at break (est.)408kJwind from the east, 11 knots11°C
Thu 5Nov17, too small3 ft9 ssoft3 ft at break (est.)162kJwind from the east-north-east, 11 knots11°C
Fri 6Nov3, too smallunder 1 ft13 s1 ft at break (est.)7kJwind from the south-east, 6 knots10°C
Sat 7Nov4, too smallunder 1 ft12 s1 ft at break (est.)6kJwind from the north-north-east, 3 knots, offshore11°C
Sun 8Nov6, too small4 ft7 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)144kJwind from the west-south-west, 12 knots12°C
Mon 9Nov30, poor8 ft9 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)875kJwind from the west-south-west, 9 knots11°C
Tue 10Nov24, poor8 ft8 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)722kJwind from the west, 13 knots11°C

Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More

Tide

  • Sun 1 NovLow 03:00 −1.1 mHigh 09:22 +1.4 mLow 15:49 −1.4 mHigh 22:22 +1.0 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 04:16 −0.9 mHigh 10:41 +1.2 mLow 17:13 −1.3 mHigh 23:49 +1.0 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 05:45 −0.9 mHigh 12:05 +1.2 mLow 18:36 −1.4 m

Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot and its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

More surf near here

1 place

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Doonloughin

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces S (200°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (20°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 6–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 1.1 km out (1 in 106). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 9°C in February, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 16°C in July, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). The town to stay in is Ballyconneely, 5.7 km away (about 10 min by car).

Water about 12°C: 4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,300–US$2,390 each

about US$1,300–US$2,390 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to SNN, estimated from distance and season, changing at JFK, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$415–US$858
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$147–US$241
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$288–US$482
Food7 days eating outabout US$322–US$596
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$127–US$208
Totalabout US$1,300–US$2,390

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 2 towns

Closest

Ballyconneely

10 min by car · 4 places to stay

about US$107/nightcountry average

See 4 places to stay in Ballyconneely · Booking.com

About Ballyconneely its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$107 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 17h 40m

About 17h 40m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → SNN, changing at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), then 2h 15m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.